Apologies
by Piroshii
Summary: Naruto and Sakura get into an arguement. Naruto says things that he regrets and wants to say he's sorry to Sakura. But what's the most sincere way to apologize? Songfic-"Sorry" by Buckcherry. -Disclaimer-I do not own Naruto, "All Apologies", or "Sorry".
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Tsunade heaved a heavy sigh as she rummaged through the paperwork. Two years ago, she had gladly accepted the position of Hokage. However, on days like this, she couldn't help but second-guess her decision. Today in particular, most of the cases presented to her weren't even worth looking at, much less reading and approving. 'Another day of mundane, boring nothing,' she thought to herself. With a sigh, she stood up and moved away from the desk; after spending a good amount of the day there, she felt that she deserved a break. Walking over to the window behind the desk, she stood there and drank in the view.

It was hard not to; from here, one had a breathtaking view of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. She slowly scanned the village, taking in everything she saw; children playing, merchants selling their wares, people lazing about in the warm spring day, students bettering their ninja abilities. It seemed that there was nothing out of the ordinary…well, almost nothing.

It was fairly faint, but Tsunade was sure she had heard it; a sound coming from the western end of the village. As she listened, it quickly and gradually grew in volume. Eventually, she was able to distinguish what it was; a scream. Further study helped her identify who it belonged to; Naruto Uzumaki.

Tsunade watched in astonishment as Konoha's #1 Hyperactive Knucklehead Ninja soared past her window. She couldn't fathom the reason for his flight, but she could two things from his shocked expression and scream; that his flight wasn't unaided or willing. She scanned the western end again to see if she could find who or what had caused Naruto to become Konoha's #1 Hyperactive Knucklehead Human Cannonball. She eventually caught sight of something; a certain kunoichi with cherry blossom-pink hair and aqua-green eyes set in a look of rage whom she'd been training for the last two years was following Naruto's flight path from the ground intently. Putting two and two together, Tsunade smiled in spite of herself at the fruits of those two years of labor.

"Leave it to those two to make even the most mundane day a little interesting," she said aloud.


	2. Confrontations & Bittersweet Exchanges

**Chapter 1: Confrontation & Bitter Exchanges**

He was lucky, he could say that much; Naruto's fall had been broken by the local shrubbery. However, he was now stuck in a bush with a furious Sakura heading his way. He was too entangled to get out of there before she got to him, so he decided to just wait it out. He saw Sakura-or rather, her legs- stop at the bush and heard a rustling; she must've been trying to get him out.

"Naruto, just what in the hell goes through your mind when you pull stupid stunts like this," she yelled as she did so. Naruto eventually felt her hands close to him, groping around him just out of reach. To help her out, as well as get it over with quickly, he reached out to her so she could get a feel for where he was and get a hold of him. After doing so, she yanked him out of the bush and dropped him unceremoniously on the ground. He picked himself up, dusted himself off, and looked at Sakura; she was standing there, arms crossed and staring daggers back at him. 'Good,' he thought. 'She's going to let me explain myself first.' Taking a deep breath, Naruto began to speak out in his defense.

"Sakura, you gotta believe me; I was just practicing stealth with a new jutsu Pervy Sage taught me. Stealth is what makes a ninja a ninja, right?"

Surprisingly, this defense was 100% true; Naruto was fine-tuning a complex Invisibility jutsu he had learned from Jiraiya and was eager to try it out. He could've gone a different route from spying on Sakura, that much he could agree with. However, that was the first thing he thought up and didn't go much more into the thought process than "spy on her and try not to get caught". Besides, watching her bathe and change her clothes was a nice little bonus, though he knew better than to say that out loud.

He would've gotten away with it if it hadn't been for her perfume; Naruto sat outside her window, studying her as she tied on her headband and reached for a bottle of perfume. He could judge from the large amount she had sprayed that it was fairly weak, and therefore needed a generous amount to be noticeable. After applying the perfume, Sakura decided to open her window to let her room air out. Unfortunately for Naruto, it was at this moment he decided to breathe in through his mouth, gagging on a large mouthful of the sweet-smelling yet thick spray. Of course, Sakura was unhappy to learn she was being spied on, and introduced Naruto to a hobby she'd picked up in the last two years; Hammer Tossing.

Sakura massaged her temples in frustration as Naruto presented his defense. "You know, the fact that you picked this up from Jiraiya doesn't help your case…" She sighed heavily. "Of course, I shouldn't really be surprised; two years with that creep had to rub off on you eventually." She looked at Naruto with exasperation. "Naruto, what am I going to do with you? Sometimes I don't think you take this seriously at all. We'll never get Sasuke back if you keep it up."

That hit below the belt to Naruto. Of course he was serious about bringing Sasuke back. He'd practically killed himself for the past two years to make sure he would be able to bring him back. He had been dead serious about this from the start. Was it wrong to try and lighten the mood so no one went nuts thinking about it? He knew she was speaking out of frustration, but her words still hurt nonetheless. He decided to speak his mind about it. At the moment, he didn't care what happened; he just needed to get it off his chest.

"Is that what you think Sakura," he asked softly.

"Sometimes, yes."

"You don't think I've thought about getting your precious Sasuke back for the last two years," he continued, becoming slightly aggressive in his speech.

Sakura had been caught off-guard by this. "Well no, but-"

"I've been consumed with bringing him back. With making YOU happy!"

"Naruto-"

"Save it," Naruto growled, interrupting her response. "I can see you don't appreciate anything I've done."

"Naruto, what are you saying," Sakura said in surprise. "Of course I appreciate what you've done." She was beginning to feel a little frightened of this change in his demeanor. She'd never seen him act this way to anyone he knew, especially her.

"Whatever," Naruto sneered sardonically. "You've never cared about what happens to me or anyone who tries to get Sasuke back here. All you care about is the end result."

"Naruto, that's not true!"

"BULLSHIT!"

Sakura's eyes widened as she stood there in shock. She hadn't expected Naruto's outburst, but the shout at the end was even more surprising. Naruto had never been one to raise his voice or lose his temper with friends. However, as she looked at him, she saw that he wasn't finished yet.

"You can deny it all you want, but deep down you know it's true. When we get Sasuke back…IF we get Sasuke back, you'll forget all about me and drop me like a bad habit as soon as you see him. Nothing else matters to little Sakura except her beloved Sasuke. Seriously, what do you see in that guy? He's stuck-up, he barely ever pays attention to you, he only cares about getting power, and he didn't think twice about leaving Konoha to do that! Not even when you tried to stop him…"

Sakura recalled that fateful night at the gates; she had done everything she could do to try to convince Sasuke, but he still left.

"He does have a lot of pain, I know that," Naruto continued. "I've felt that pain. But I didn't have to leave the village or join a criminal organization to try and get rid of it."

Naruto looked up at Sakura. She looked at his face; his eyes, though giving off a fire of anger, seemed dim with defeat. His expression, though radiating life with fury, appeared dead from gloom. "If that's what you want, then go and get him yourself. Because as far as I'm concerned, this isn't my problem anymore."

With that Naruto began to walk in the direction Sakura had come from, heading back into the village. She looked at him as he left.

"Naruto, please wait…"

Naruto didn't respond. He just kept walking, purpose in his steps and a slump in his shoulders, a walking contradiction of life and death.


	3. Heartfelt Apology 1

**Chapter 2: Heartfelt Apology #1**

Sakura watched Naruto as he left. She felt her eyes begin to water as she took in his words. The tears spilled over as she fully realized everything he'd said; Naruto had essentially told her that his drive to get Sasuke back and make her happy, for her sake and his, had driven him to a level of strain he'd never reached and had cracked from it. As a result…he was giving up on his promise. Sakura continued to cry as she went back to the village, as she went home, as she went to her room, and as she lay on her bed, crying more than any human being should be capable of.

'It's all my fault,' she thought. 'I made Naruto do all of this.' Her thoughts went to the fight at The Valley of the End. Naruto could've very well been killed in that fight if Sasuke hadn't decided for some reason not to. Before that fight, Naruto had made his Promise of a Lifetime to Sakura. After the battle, she saw that he was willing to risk it all, even his life, to make her happy, and what did she do? She chastised him for something that, if pretty perverted, probably wasn't as bad as she had made it out to be. 'I have to do something,' she said to herself. 'But…what should I do?' After spending some time thinking about it, Sakura came to the only conclusion that she could; she had to apologize. All she could hope was that Naruto would be willing to talk.

'Well…here goes nothing,' Sakura thought. Steeling herself, she gently knocked on Naruto's door. She had been afraid the whole way here, but standing here, waiting for him to answer, was absolutely unnerving. She waited for a few seconds and didn't get an answer. She felt a little discouraged, yet at the same time, also couldn't help feeling relieved. She wasn't sure if she could go through with this, and Naruto's lack of response could be an excuse to put it off. She shook these thoughts out of her head. 'No, I need to do this now,' she told herself. She once again knocked, a bit louder this time. When she didn't get a response this time, she almost gave up. It was fairly late, and Naruto probably wasn't awake at this time. However, she heard a faint grumbling from the other side. Naruto must've heard her. Reacting in spite of herself, she knocked again with more fervor.

"Hold on, hold on," she heard Naruto mumble from the inside. She felt her heart beating out of her chest as she heard him getting closer to the door. The suspense was starting to get too much to take. Just when she thought she might explode, she heard the door open, and there stood Naruto. He seemed surprised that Sakura would come to see him, especially this late. His surprise immediately gave way to the last thing she expected from him; concern.

"Sakura, what are you doing here this late? Is something wrong?"

Sakura did the only thing she could think of at the moment; she flung her arms around Naruto's neck, holding onto him for dear life. Naruto was even more surprised by Sakura's embrace, hesitantly putting his arms around her. She began sobbing into his shoulder.

"Sakura…"

"Oh, Naruto…I'm so sorry…"

"Sorry?" Naruto put his hands on Sakura's shoulders to signal some slight separation between the two of them. She complied, still keeping her hands crossed behind his head. He looked her in the eye. "What do you feel sorry for?"

Hearing these words, Sakura couldn't help but think, 'That idiot. Did he really forget?' She smiled sadly at this thought before she answered.

"For what happened earlier, Naruto. When we had our fight…"

A look of realization crossed Naruto's face. He looked at Sakura guiltily.

"Oh, that. Well…I tried to forget it ever happened after the fact, you know? I just thought it was a stupid fight."

"But Naruto, I shouldn't have gone off like I did. I made you say all those things…I made you yell…"

"Wha-Sakura, you didn't make me do any of that!"

"But I did! Always thinking about Sasuke. I guess I never realized how much you really did worry about it. Naruto, please tell me you won't give up. I'm sorry about not thinking about your side of it as much as I should've. I promise I won't neglect to think about you again. I'll even forget about Sasuke!"

This last bit shocked Naruto. Normally, this would be the thing he wanted to hear from Sakura; that she'd replace Sasuke in her thoughts with him. But for some reason…he didn't feel any sense of satisfaction from hearing those words, and he knew he was the reason for that; he'd made her believe she was a selfish girl who didn't care for others. His words were said out of pure frustration and anger, and seeing what they did to Sakura, seeing her cry…seeing that he'd made her cry…he immediately regretted ever saying them. He pulled Sakura close to him, and she willingly moved into the embrace.

"Sakura…don't say those things," he whispered in her ear. "I never wanted to give up on Sasuke…and I don't want you to, either." He moved his head to look her in the eyes, closer than they were when they first did this. "I was just so angry and stressed out…I needed to let out some steam." He then looked off to his room sheepishly. "I…also happened to do a little of that when I got back."

Sakura looked where Naruto was looking and saw what he meant; a good portion of it had been completely trashed, almost as if a fight had taken place there. 'So angry,' Sakura thought. 'I honestly had no idea…' Naruto looked back at Sakura. "Don't worry about it. It's my fault what happened in there happened." He then gave her his trademark goofy grin. "Besides, with some help from my Shadow Clones, I can get this cleaned up in no time!"

Sakura couldn't help but smile at this. Leave it to Naruto to try and cheer anyone up, no matter what happened. He adopted a slightly more serious look as he continued.

"Look, about the fight…let's try to pretend it never happened, okay? Let's put it out of our minds and go on with our lives. You don't have to worry about a thing, Sakura; I still want to get Sasuke back. I'm never going to back down from this promise, it's my Ninja Way, remember?"

Sakura smiled warmly at Naruto. She could see that he was serious about what he'd just said. "Okay. Thanks, Naruto."

She fully separated from him and turned to leave. However, she stopped before she got to the steps. 'Should I…? Yeah, I think he deserves at least that…' She then turned back to Naruto.

"Huh? What is it," Naruto asked, confused. Before he knew what had happened, Sakura quickly went up to him and snuck a quick kiss on his cheek. She then quickly turned away and left before he could see how red she had gotten just from that. Eventually, what had just happened hit Naruto, and he was initially unsure of what to do. At last, he just shook his head and went back inside. Sakura looked back up to Naruto's room as she started her way back to her house. 'Thanks again, Naruto,' she said to herself before continuing back to her house.


	4. Inner Conflict & A Sudden Resolution

**Chapter 3: Inner Conflict & A Sudden Resolution**

"DAMMIT!"

Naruto couldn't help but feel angry again, but not with Sakura, or even Sasuke; he was angry with himself. "Dammit, I shouldn't have flown off the handle like that," Naruto chastised himself aloud as he stormed around the room, trying not to break any more stuff. "Now Sakura thinks she's a terrible person because of me!"

He eventually slumped against a wall and slowly slid down until he was sitting on the floor, hugging his knees to his chest and pressing his head on them. 'I gotta apologize to her now…more for me than for her, really,' he said to himself. Sakura may have been fairly quick to forgive, even if Naruto didn't flat out apologize, but he wanted to make things right by apologizing sincerely. The only problem was he didn't really know the best way to do it.

'How can I apologize to Sakura in a way that she knows I'm being sincere?' Sighing, Naruto looked up at the remains of his room. 'Well, I guess I should worry about this first…' Standing up, Naruto slowly went about, picking things up. Eventually, he spied something on the ground underneath the remains of a table; it was a radio, which somehow remained untouched in his earlier rampage in his room. He picked it up, and after examining it for a bit, decided to turn it on, figuring that he could pick up the pace a little with some music. He switched between some channels until he found one that didn't pick up any static. It was playing Classic Rock. However, the song that was currently playing was a bit modern to be considered "Classic". Still, it had a fairly mellow sound to it, so Naruto decided to take a listen:

_I wish I was like you/Easily amused_

_Find my nest of salt/Everything is my fault_

_I'll take all the blame/Of this evil shame_

_Sunburn, freezer burn/Choking on the ashes of her enemy_

Naruto couldn't help but chuckle; some of the words were ridiculous, that much was certain. However, there was a feeling he got from some of the words: "I'll take all the blame." He stopped picking up as he let those words go through his head a few times. Eventually, he came across a conclusion; this guy was taking the blame and saying he was sorry, even if it wasn't his fault, because he said it was. This gave Naruto some sudden inspiration. Summoning some Shadow Clones, he quickly got to work repairing his room and preparing it for his Apology of a Lifetime.


	5. Unexplained Absence

**Chapter 4: Unexplained Absence**

'Hm…this is weird,' Sakura thought to herself as she stood at the bridge that had become her team's usual meeting place. Usually, it was her and Naruto waiting for their perpetually late teacher, Kakashi Hatake. However, today it was just her. It wasn't like Naruto to be late like this, and she secretly hoped nothing had happened to him. She replayed the events of the night before in her head; everything seemed to be settled, but there was something bothering her. Naruto had told her to forget about the fight ever happening, but he hadn't outright told her that he'd forgiven her. She couldn't help but feel worried about that; if Naruto hadn't forgiven her, then there was a pretty good chance that he was putting up a front for Sakura to make her feel better. If that was the case, he may have thought that her apology was a front to get him to keep his promise. She didn't want him to think she was manipulative or anything like that, but she ran that risk. 'This doesn't look good,' Sakura continued. 'I really need to show Naruto that I'm sorry. He needs proof that I'm serious.'

Sakura was shaken from her thoughts by a sudden puff of smoke. Appearing next to her was Kakashi. "Sorry I'm late," he began as he always did; with an excuse. "I was caught up in some paperwork for some new students." Before Sakura could scoff at his excuse, she turned to see Kakashi furiously scribbling on a paper attached to a clipboard. 'Well, what do you know,' she said to herself as she smiled. 'He's actually got a real excuse.' (Unbeknownst to her, the paper Kakashi had was blank. What he had written was "Remember to pick up the latest 'Icha Icha Paradise'. P.S. Must thank Might Guy for this.") Kakashi looked up to see Sakura, but no Naruto. "Well, this is certainly odd. I thought Naruto would be here waiting with you, Sakura," Kakashi noted. "Then again, that would explain why it was so quiet…"

Sakura giggled at this remark. "I know, right?" Her expression creased slightly with worry. "But you're right, it is weird. You're always late, but today, the one who hasn't shown up yet is -" Sakura felt a hand tap on her shoulder. She turned around and almost jumped out of her skin in surprise. There was Naruto, sitting behind her on the edge of the bridge, his face a little too close for comfort as she turned to face him.

"N-Naruto!"

Naruto chuckled at her reaction. "Did you miss me?"

Almost purely out of instinct from all the times Naruto had done something goofy or strange, Sakura gave Naruto a shove for his actions and words, causing him to topple over backwards into the water below. She instantly went to the edge to see if Naruto was alright, not realizing how much force she'd used. However, the water was calm, as if nothing had fallen. Sakura was confused for a second, until Naruto's head popped out from under the bridge.

"Boo!"

Once again, Sakura nearly yelped out as she jumped back from the edge. Naruto climbed back up to join the others. Sakura had to restrain herself from smacking him in the back of the head. Kakashi watched this interaction and smiled.

"Well now, it seems the idiot has returned to the village."

His sudden put-down, combined with Naruto's expression, caused Sakura to burst out laughing. The other two looked at her until she was calm again, feeling a little embarrassed at her outburst and the stares from the other two. They then left for their mission, but Sakura had to stop looking at the others or else she would go into a fit of giggles from watching Naruto sneak dirty looks at Kakashi behind his back. As the day went on, she noted that nothing seemed out of the ordinary from Naruto. 'Maybe I'm overreacting,' she thought to herself. However, she couldn't help but also think it wouldn't hurt to watch Naruto for some sign of whether or not the fight was still on his mind like it was with her.

For a while, Sakura studied Naruto's behavior and noticed a few things; some days, she would see him with his nose in a notebook, furiously scribbling something down. A couple of times when she looked his way, she saw his left hand cupped as if holding an invisible ball, making strange signs with his fingers that didn't look like hand seals. Finally, she noticed that some days, if he wasn't out on a mission or doing something for Tsuade, Kakashi or whoever needed his assistance, Naruto would stay in his apartment and essentially never leave. One attempt to coax him out had caused her worry to skyrocket: she knocked on the door to his apartment one day, and Naruto opened the door just wide enough to poke his head out.

"Oh, hey Sakura."

"Hey, Naruto," she replied back. "Listen, I wanted to ask you something."

"Sure, what is it?"

"Well," she started a little hesitantly. "I was just in town, and I decided to grab a bite to eat at Ichiraku's, so…I was wondering if maybe you'd like to join me?"

Naruto seemed pleasantly surprised at this. Sakura wouldn't have been surprised, or minded, if he considered it a date, since she wanted him to see she was serious about thinking about him more often. However, the answer she got floored her:

"I appreciate the offer Sakura, but I'm afraid I'm gonna have to pass on it this time. Sorry." Without another word, Naruto stuck his head back inside and shut the door.

Sakura was too surprised to even respond; Naruto never, EVER, passed up ramen, especially if it was Ichiraku ramen. Eventually, she had had enough of the wondering.

One day, while sitting in her room, Sakura let her thoughts drift back to Naruto: what was with the odd behavior? All the writing? The strange hand signs? The staying inside all day? Was he sick? Was he hiding something? Was it even worth getting so worked up over? After coming close to ripping her hair out going over every possible answer, Sakura decided to stop thinking and start acting.

"I need to see for myself just what the heck Naruto is doing," Sakura said to herself aloud. "The only problem is how I do it…" Sighing, she got up and looked out her window. How she wished she could find out what was going on with Naruto. She knew she couldn't just go up and ask him about it; he'd been avoiding her and almost everybody else who brought it up. And if she mentioned the fight, he'd probably play dumb about it and act like it never happened, like he said. That pretty much meant that the only way to figure anything out was to try and find out without him knowing. But how could she go about that? To do so would require some kind of…

Sakura nearly kicked herself in the ass for not realizing it earlier. She thought back to the situation that had started this earlier; Naruto had been testing a complex invisibility jutsu he picked up from Jiraiya. While she never learned the type Naruto used, she did know a fairly simple one. And fortunately for her, she had remembered it at just the right time; outside, she saw Naruto walking down the road with the other "Dead Lasts" from their academy days; Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru. Doing the proper hand signs, Sakura activated the jutsu, which rendered her completely invisible. Opening the window, she climbed out and carefully made her way to the street before the others picked up on her sounds. Keeping her breathing as quiet as possible, Sakura listened as they came into hearing range;

"…So THAT'S what you've been doing, is it," said Kiba, a slight hint of interest in his voice.

"Yep. I figured it was the best way," Naruto responded.

"Well, good luck with that," Shikamaru replied. "Personally, I think going to that kind of length is too troublesome, but that's just me."

"EVERYTHING'S too troublesome for you, Shikamaru," Naruto retorted. "Well anyway, I better get back. Just got to put the finishing touches on it and I'll be good to go."

This piqued Sakura's curiosity; she now knew he was doing something that he wasn't telling her about. But just what was Naruto doing? As the group went their separate ways, she quietly followed Naruto. 'How does it feel to have the tables turned, Naruto,' she said silently as she smirked at this reversal of roles. Suddenly, she saw Naruto stop where he was and stiffen. He then turned and looked back, right at Sakura. She held her breath and stood absolutely still. Naruto continued to look at her for what seemed an eternity. Eventually, he shrugged and turned back around to continue walking. After he put some distance between them, Sakura let out her held breath in relief. She continued to walk, keeping some slight distance between them as she did so.


	6. Heartfelt Apology 2

**Chapter 5: Heartfelt Apology #2 & Another Promise of A Lifetime**

Naruto eventually reached his apartment. He reached his door and was about to enter when he stopped. He sighed and looked down at his feet.

"Go home, Sakura."

After pausing for a beat, he sighed again.

"Look, I know you're there and that you've been following me. You don't learn a complex jutsu without learning how to figure out the simpler versions of it. So go ahead and show yourself."

He heard a sigh, and turned to see a puff of smoke, with Sakura emerging from it.

"Naruto, what's going on? I want to know."

"Look Sakura, it's not really any of your business."

"But I want it to be. Naruto, I really want to know what you're doing."

He looked at her skeptically. "Do you, Sakura? Do you really? Or are you just saying things you don't mean?"

Sakura's fears had been proven; not only did Naruto not believe her, he hadn't seemed to forgiven her, either. In fact, he seemed even more hurt by her perceived manipulation. She looked at Naruto with sincere concern.

"Naruto, I'm serious. I've been going half-crazy not knowing what the hell you're doing. You never say anything, and when you do, you don't say it to me. Please Naruto, I'm begging you. Please…tell me what's going on…" Tears fell from her eyes as she poured her heart out to Naruto. He looked at her, listened to her every word, and saw that she was serious about everything. Heaving another sigh, Naruto opened the door, stepping aside as he did. He looked at Sakura.

"…After you."

She looked at him, then into the doorway which led to his room. Slowly, she stepped inside. As she did, she noticed that there was something different about it. As she studied it further, she saw that there was A LOT different about it; the room had been refurbished, that much was true. However, there was something on all the walls. A kind of thick material.

"Soundproofing," Naruto said behind her as he entered, answering the question on her mind. "So the neighbors don't complain too much." As she walked quietly, she looked down at her feet and saw that even the floor had been carpeted with the soundproofing material. 'Someone's been busy,' she said to herself. She continued to observe the other changes made; in one corner, she could see what appeared to be a drum kit, and scattered around that immediate area were some microphones and other instruments, like guitars. There also appeared to be some paper and books strewn about. The most noticeable thing, however, was a small area that had been walled off with some kind of glass. Inside, she could see some complex machinery. As she took it all in, she saw what Naruto had been up to; He had essentially transformed his room into a small recording studio. She turned to look at him.

"How did you do all of this? I've only seen you leave-"

"When I had a mission to complete or errands to run," Naruto finished for her. "Well…not all of it was actual mission or errand work." Naruto then made the hand sign for his Shadow Clone jutsu, and a few clones appeared. He looked over at Sakura. "You caught me at the right time. I'm just about to record." Sakura sat down in a nearby chair, confused yet interested in what Naruto was doing. He and some of the clones went to instruments while one went to the small, closed-off room with glass walls. The others started to tune their instruments, looking up every so often to the one in the control room. Eventually, he gave them all a thumbs-up.

"Okay, let's get ready," Naruto said to them. They all nodded and prepared themselves. "Okay, then…one…two…three…"

On the uncounted four, they began to play. Sakura was fairly surprised; Naruto was playing pretty well, and with the Shadow Clones, he was essentially a one-man band. She listened intently to the music. Then, Naruto began to sing:

_Oh I…had a lot to say/Was thinkin' on my time away_

_I missed you and things weren't the same…_

Sakura sat there, spellbound. She never expected Naruto to have such a…voice. Normally, he was very bombastic and loud in his speech, but as he sang, he was very gentle and each syllable seemed to drip of the emotion he was conveying. It may not have been the best, but it was better than she ever would've expected out of someone like Naruto.

'_Cause everything inside/It never works out right_

_And when I see you cry/ It makes me wanna die_

As he upped the volume, he seemed to convey the emotions strongly, more urgently. Sakura couldn't peel her eyes away.

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry you're blue/I'm sorry 'bout all the things I said to you_

_And I know I can't take 'em back…_

_I love how you kiss/I love all your sounds_

_And baby, the way you make my world go 'round_

_And I just wanted to say…I'm sorry._

_This time, I think I'm to blame/It gets harder to get through the day_

_You get older and blame turns to shame…_

'_Cause everything inside/It never works out right_

_And when I see you cry/It makes me wanna di-i-i-i-ie_

_I'm sorry I'm bad, 'm sorry you're blue/I'm sorry 'bout all the things I've said to you_

_And I know I can't take 'em back…_

_I love how you kiss/I love all your sounds_

_And baby, the way you make my world go 'round_

_And I just wanted to sa-a-a-ay I'm sorry_

_Every single day/I think about how we came all this way_

_The sleepless nights and the tears you cried/It's never too late to make it right_

_Oh yeah…Sorry!_

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry you're blue/I'm sorry 'bout all the things I've said to you_

_And I know I can't take 'em back…_

_I love how you kiss/I love all your sounds_

_And baby, the way you make my world go 'round_

_And I just wanted to sa-a-a-ay…_

_I'm sorry, oh-oh-oh!_

_I'm sorry, baby/I'm sorry, baby_

_Yeah, I'm sorry…_

As the song finished, Sakura felt her eyes water a little. Naruto sounded so…regretful. So sincere, as if he really was apologizing for something. She heard him sigh.

"Alright, looks like that one's a keeper." He sent the Shadow Clones away and went into the glass room. In there, he fiddled with the machine and got something out of it; a cassette tape. He stepped out and went over to Sakura. "So…what did ya think?"

"That was beautiful," Sakura answered. "You mean this is what you've been doing all this time?"

"Yeah."

"Naruto, why didn't you tell me? This isn't something you keep secret."

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Well…I kept it a secret from you because…it was FOR you."

"What," Sakura asked, astonished.

Naruto came closer to her and took her hand. He put the tape in it and closed it. "I made this for you," he told her. "I wanted t make sure I knew what I was doing this time."

Sakura looked up at him, surprised. "Naruto, you didn't have to do this…thank you." She then looked down at the tape. Suddenly, she looked up at him, confused.

"Naruto…what did you make this for?"

Naruto met her confused look with one of his own. "Huh? What do you mean, Sakura? I said I made it for you."

Sakura shook her head. "No, there had to be a reason for making this. What for?"

Naruto just looked down at his feet. Sakura pressed further.

"Naruto, you don't have to hide anything from me."

"With a sigh, Naruto looked up at her slightly. "Here's a hint; what's the one word you heard most often?"

"Naruto, this isn't time for riddles!"

"If you think about it, it's not even that hard to figure out."

Sighing, Sakura thought about it for a second. She soon figured out that the word "sorry" was repeatedly used. She knew what "sorry" was used for; as a way of apologizing. But why would Naruto…

Her thoughts suddenly went back to the fight. She had said some fairly nasty things, but Naruto's words were a fair bit harsher. She was able to look past that when she thought more about the situation and saw that a lot of his words were steeped in fact, while hers were steeped in frustration and irrationality. However, if she were in Naruto's position…

"There's a tape player over there," Naruto replied casually, pointing to a table on which aforementioned tape recorder stood. She quickly went over to it and put the tape in, playing it. She heard the song start. As she listened, she analyzed every specific line that stuck out, using her innate observation skills:

_Oh, I…had a lot to say/Was thinkin' on my time away_

From that, Sakura could glean some information; she assumed the line was a reference to the fight they'd had all those days ago. Naruto had been thinking about what he'd said while he was away, preparing this song.

'_Cause everything inside/It never works out right_

_And when I see you cry/ It makes me wanna die_

'That night I apologized first,' Sakura thought as she listened. She had been crying, and it seemed that Naruto was unhappy to see that.

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry you're blue/I'm sorry 'bout all the things I said to you_

_And I know I can't take 'em back…_

'Naruto regrets what he said,' she continued to herself. 'Oh, Naruto…you didn't need to apologize for that…'

_This time, I think I'm to blame/It gets harder to get through the day_

_You get older and blame turns to shame…_

Sakura never heard any more of it. After that line, she was too engrossed in her thoughts to continue listening. She realized what this was; Naruto was apologozing to her through this song. He still had that fight on his mind just like she did, and he was putting the blame on himself for it. To think he would do something like that, to try to ease the burden off her mind, at least to him, showed her how much he really cared. She was so caught up in her mental reverie that she didn't initially notice the tape had stopped. She eventually turned to look at Naruto. She hoped that he would display some sign that this was a joke; she honestly hoped he wasn't trying to blame himself for everything. However, his expression was the same as the sentiment of the song; utterly apologetic. Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Naruto…"

Before he realized what was happening, Naruto suddenly saw Sakura rush over to him and put her arms around him again, openly weeping just as she had done on that night. However, unlike that time, Naruto was more reactant to Sakura. He quickly took hold of her arms and gently pulled her away, looking at her intently.

"Sakura, what is it? What's wrong?"

She didn't respond. Instead, she shook his grip and caught him in another embrace, burying her head into his shoulder as she did so. This time, he simply put his arms around her and held her for a bit. When she calmed down, she started to speak.

"Naruto…this is all my fault."

Once again, Naruto pulled away from Sakura slightly, studying her.

"Sakura, what are you talking about? What's your fault?"

"Everything, Naruto; the fight, that song, your promise," she said hastily, her words almost running into each other.

"Hey Sakura, calm down. Take this one at a time, okay?"

She looked at Naruto, a sad smile slowly forming on her face. "Naruto…you're the last person I expected the words 'calm down' to come from."

She looked down at her feet, taking some deep breaths before she continued.

"I'm talking about our fight. I said some things I should've thought about before just blurting them out. I hurt you…and you lashed out at me because you were angry…"

"Sakura, I was angry, yeah. But still, I shouldn't have gone off like that. I upset you…I made you cry…I couldn't handle that."

Sakura looked him right in the eyes. "So, you thought you had to apologize for that?"

"I wanted to," Naruto replied softly. "I couldn't stand the thought of you believing you were some horrible person because of something I said. So I took the blame for it all; I wanted to take it from you and put it on my shoulders. That's what a Hokage would do, right?"

Sakura looked at Naruto with a sympathetic, yet warm smile. "Naruto…you poor, stupid little boy."

Suddenly, Sakura came closer to Naruto and, taking his face in her hands, pressed her lips against his. Naruto stood there in shock, unable to prepare or even respond to the kiss. When she separated, she couldn't help but giggle at his expression.

"Naruto, you shouldn't have to do this. You made this promise to me because you really care about me. I can see that now. I held you to it because I knew that you were the one I can depend on the most. Now, I can see that I can depend on you for another thing; to be there for me when I need someone."

She hugged closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You've always been there for me. I guess I'm only just realizing this, but it's the honest truth. I just wish I could've been there for you more, especially early on. You've been through so much, and had no one to go to…"

Sakura looked at him again and saw realization in his eyes; everything she had said was the absolute truth, and he could see that.

"Naruto, you've made a promise to me, now it's my turn," she began with a definite tone. "This is my Promise of A Lifetime to you, Naruto Uzumaki; I promise, from here on out, to be there for you no matter what. You shouldn't take my burden and add it to yours; we should share the burden together and help each other no matter what happens. From here on out, no more apologies, no more regrets. What happened happened and we don't need to dwell on it anymore. We'll get Sasuke back together. But not for me, for him."

Naruto looked into her eyes and saw meaning to her words. Sakura was telling him that she still wanted Sasuke back, but it wasn't for her anymore. She wanted him back for his own sake, so he wouldn't be corrupted any more than he was. She had also mentioned a promise for him; a promise to think of him more, to be his support if he needed it, and to be there for him no matter what. There was only one thing Naruto could get from those words.

"Sakura," he said softly as he looked at her, "are you saying you…"

She put a finger over his lips to silence him and looked at him, her eyes shining with the words he wanted to hear from her.

"Don't speak," she whispered softly.

She then moved forward into another kiss. This time, Naruto reacted; he put his arms around her waist, holding their bodies close to each other as they shared silent words. With this kiss, they conveyed everything that was on their minds to each other, including three simple words each wanted to say to the other:

_I Forgive You_

**So, there's the story. Pretty much all of it was done off the top of my head, much like everything else I do. XD This is my first ever fanfic, so R&R please. Thanks, and there's more on the way!**


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